Baseball: Jake Cave's exit was frustrating, but the rest of the season was outstanding

To be blunt, the exit couldn't have been much worse. An ejection in the district championship game -- for wearing a necklace, of all things. And a suspension for the first round of the regional tournament.

But Jake Cave's senior year at Kecoughtan was nothing short of remarkable. He batted .609 with 16 extra-base hits in 23 games. He drew 26 walks in 91 plate appearances (a .725 on-base percentage) and once was put on intentionally with first and second already occupied.

On the mound, he was 6-3 with a 1.78 ERA and 101 strikeouts in 55 innings. With a fastball that topped at 94 miles per hour, he became unfair when his curve began working around midseason.

Earlier this month, the New York Yankees selected him in the sixth round of the major-league draft. He has a scholarship to LSU if he wants it, but the Yankees want to make him an everyday outfielder ASAP.

Yes, he's that good.

"I played in the 1980s, I coached at Menchville (as an assistant) for seven years, and this is my third year here," Kecoughtan coach Chad Ochsenfeld said. "He's the best high school player I've ever seen. He's the total package."

"Jake's a firecracker, there's no doubt about that," Woodside coach Kevin Hare said the night of Cave's ejection. "But he's good for baseball. With HRVarsity, the kid gets scrutinized to death. Yet he comes out here all year long. He's a magnet, but he's good for baseball."